Fallout: New Vegas

February 4, 2010 - The debut teaser trailer for Fallout: New Vegas that was released this morning shows a barren wasteland surrounding a still-intact Las Vegas cityscape. The first thing I asked was how has the city survived the apocalypse intact? Then the camera pans back and reveals an ominous looking character who is wearing a mask and trench coat standing on the outskirts of town looking in. The trailer ends with the line, "War, war never changes." Read more on Fallout: New Vegas and see the trailer ...

Fallout 3 Rules

The third game in the Fallout series, Fallout 3 is a singleplayer action role-playing game (RPG) set in a post-apocalyptic Washington DC. Combining the horrific insanity of the Cold War era theory of mutually assured destruction gone terribly wrong, with the kitschy naivety of American 1950s nuclear propaganda, Fallout 3 will satisfy both players familiar with the popular first two games in its series as well as those coming to the franchise for the first time.

I have played Fallout 3 more than all the other games I have combined. The endless wandering through the Capital Wasteland never ceases to entertain me. I actually have to limit how much time I spend playing it or I would spend several hours a day playing this game.

Fallout 3 Official Trailer

Fun at Tenpenny Tower in Fallout 3

Here is a great video from YouTube called Fallout 3: fun with 150 mines and an old man by sk8ingmonkey4 on YouTube. It is his version of blowing up Tenpenny: Tenpenny and a pile of 150 mines.

If you don't already know, Tenpenny Tower is located in the southwest section of your map in Fallout 3. After the Great War turned everything into the wasteland that I love to wander the building that was to become Tenpenny Tower was still intact. Allistair Tenpenny began restoring the old luxury hotel is it is now the refuge of Allistair Tenpenny who allows people to live there for the right price, however as you will find out Ghouls need not apply. Read a bit more about Tenpenny Tower.

Fallout DLC for PS3

The award-winning Broken Steel, The Pitt and Operation: Anchorage are now available for download on the US PlayStation Store for $9.99.

Broken Steel

Broken Steel enables you to continue your existing Fallout 3 game and finish the fight against the Enclave alongside Liberty Prime. Broken Steel also moves the level cap for your character from 20 to 30, allowing you to experience even more of Fallout 3, which as I have stated is my favorite game. Broken Steel also includes some new perks and achievements.

In Broken Steel, the player has dealt the Enclave a serious blow at Project Purity, but their forces are still out in the Wasteland and pose a grave threat to the people and security of the Capital Wasteland. In Broken Steel, you’ll continue your current Fallout 3 character past the events of Project Purity, and work with the Brotherhood of Steel to eliminate the Enclave threat once and for all. Your character will be able to travel to new locations like the Olney Powerworks, brandish destructive new weapons like the Tesla Cannon, and fight commanding new creatures like the Super Mutant Overlord.

The Pitt

The Pitt allows you to travel to the post-apocalyptic remains of Pittsburgh, Pennsylvania and become entangled in a conflict between slaves and their Raider masters. Investigate an extensive settlement ravaged by nuclear radiation, time, neglect, and moral degradation.

The Pitt is very morally vague – there’s no real right or wrong, just choices to be made by the player, sides to be chosen, and a mystery that could send shockwaves throughout the entire Wasteland.

The Pitt opens with a desperate radio message, and a meeting with its sender, an escaped slave named Wernher. Wernher claims that the leader of “The Pitt” has created a cure for mutations… and he needs you to go in and retrieve it. From there, the player can proceed in a number of ways, in true Fallout 3 style.

Operation Anchorage

In Operation: Anchorage the player will find themselves able to re-live the famous liberation of Anchorage from Fallout lore -- inside a simulation similar to one found along the main quest of Fallout 3. Once the player finds their way into the simulation, they'll be stripped of their resources and have to survive within the rules set up by the simulation's creators.

The Chinese red army is everywhere, and the player will first have to secure the surrounding mountain side and then fight their way into the Chinese base. The player will have to use a lot of their standard combat skills, along with several new tools that will only be available in the downloadable content. These include interactive Strike Teams under the player's command and unique armor, weapons, and other exotic gadgets.

Point Lookout

Point Lookout and Mothership Zeta are also available for the Playstation 3.

The fourth Fallout 3 downloadable expansion, Point Lookout, takes you on a ferry ride to an area that time forgot. It's a swampy environment that sits just outside the Capital Wasteland filled with gnarled trees, foggy hillsides and inbred monstrosities that live in shacks.

Mothership Zeta

Those who explored the wasteland in Fallout 3 have likely come across a downed alien ship sending out a distress beacon. Well, that call for help gets answered in the last Fallout 3 downloadable add-on, Mothership Zeta. These are not your E.T. phone home types of aliens. Instead of offering friendship and flying bicycles, these guys are here to abduct humans in the name of alien science.

Mothership Zeta begins with your abduction. From there, your number one goal is to find the captain's bridge and a way back to Earth's surface. To do that you'll have to team up with a few other humans and fight your way through the bowels of this massive space cruiser. The aliens aren't going to sit back and let you have your way. A few different varieties of nasty little critters will take up arms against you, as will some new types of robots. Come prepared for a battle.

An interesting perspective on playing Fallout 3 can be found here.

The Vault

Need some help with Fallout3, then check out a Fallout wiki with over 7,555 articles called The Vault. The Vault is a community that aims to create the best resource for the Fallout series of games, including Fallout, Fallout 2, Fallout 3 and their spin-offs. The Vault's portal dedicated to Fallout 3 is an indispensible resource that gives valuable information of the Fallout world for anyone playing Fallout 3. I don't know how many times I went this website when I first started playing Fallout 3 to find out where locations, weapons and items I needed were.

There is a terrific interactive map of the whole Capital Wasteland where you can pinpoint locations of building, items, weapons and almost anything else you might be seeking. There is also a very helpful map of the DC districts and connecting metros that shows what connects to where in the downtown D.C. area.

I still go to The Vault for information, but just not as often now that I have spent over 150 hours exploring the Fallout 3 world.

2009 Best of IGN

IGN.com's Best Expansion Award for PC is Fallout 3 - Broken Steel DLC. Some gamers were disappointed when Fallout 3 actually had an end, but Broken Steel gives you a chance to keep the music going. More ...

Many of us older gamers were disappointed when Fallout 3 actually had an end, especially since we don't always run out and buy the latest video game on the market. We tend to keep playing the games we like. However Broken Steel gives you a chance to keep wandering the capital wasteland. Broken Steel for Fallout 3 continues the story from the end of the original game and gives players lots of new content to play around with. You can read IGN's review of Broken Steel for Fallout 3 as well as reviews for other platforms for Broken Steel and the main Fallout 3 title.

Available to Xbox 360 and PC owners, I like Fallout 3 Broken Steel because you get the opportunity to extend the main story, and it lifts the level cap and offers some new weapons and armor to play around with while wandering the capital wasteland.

Fallout 3: Game of The Year Edition

The Fallout 3 Game of the Year Edition will be released on October 13, 2009. Pre-order now!

Fallout 3: Game of The Year Edition for PS3

Fallout 3: Game of The Year Edition for XBOX

The Story: For 200 years, Vault 101 , a fallout shelter, has faithfully served the surviving residents of Washington DC and its environs, now known as the Capital Wasteland. Though the global atomic war of 2077 left the US all but destroyed, the residents of Vault 101 enjoy a life free from the constant stress of the outside world. Giant Insects, Raiders, Slavers, and yes, even Super Mutants are all no match for superior Vault-Tec engineering. Yet one fateful morning, you awake to find that your father has defied the Overseer and left the comfort and security afforded by Vault 101 for reasons unknown. Leaving the only home you've ever known, you emerge from the Vault into the harsh Wasteland sun to search for your father, and the truth.

The Old Man's Top 5

	# 1: ★★★★★ Red Dead Redemption is an open-world, third-person, action-adventure game set at the tail end of the American West West era. Action takes place in the first few years of the twentieth century and revolves around the choices that the protagonist, former outlaw John Marston, is forced to make due to his blemished past.
	# 2: ★★★★★ Follow-up game to 2007's critically acclaimed Uncharted: Drake's Fortune, the PlayStation 3 exclusive Uncharted 2: Among Thieves is a continuation of the adventures of Nathan Drake, a fortune-hunter with a shady reputation and an even shadier past. Chock full of all the action, adventure, cinematic story elements and beautiful graphics that set the first game apart, Uncharted 2: Among Thieves adds deep online multiplayer options, including co-op and competitive campaigns, and a whole new supporting cast of characters.
	# 3: ★★★★★ Modern Warfare 2 is a first-person tactical shooter and the sixth entry in the popular Call of Duty series. True to its name and following the lead of its predecessor, Call of Duty: Modern Warfare, it places players in modern combat settings, as opposed to the WWII environments of the earlier Call of Duty games. This modern approach brings with it new weapons, action and options. Coupled with a variety of gameplay modes including single player, multiplayer and the co-op Special Ops Mode, it is destined to be one of the most popular games of 2009 and a worthy addition to the Call of Duty series.
	# 4: ★★★★★ Get ready to plunge into the lush and deadly world of the Italian Renaissance, an era of arts, riches and murderous conspiracy. Assassin's Creed II introduces you to Ezio, a new assassin carrying on the deadly lineage of his forebears. Confront an epic tale of power and corruption as you hone your assassin's art, wielding weapons and instruments designed by the legendary Leonardo da Vinci himself in this gripping and deadly sequel.
	# 5: ★★★★★ The third game in the Fallout series, Fallout 3 is a singleplayer action role-playing game (RPG) set in a post-apocalyptic Washington DC. Combining the horrific insanity of the Cold War era theory of mutually assured destruction gone terribly wrong, with the kitschy naivety of American 1950s nuclear propaganda, Fallout 3 will satisfy both players familiar with the popular first two games in its series as well as those coming to the franchise for the first time.

Be sure to check out GameStop's Weekly Ad for any of the games and gaming systems mentioned a oldervideogamers.com.